Endocrine Abstracts

Aims: To compare the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles of insulin aspart, biphasic insulin aspart 70 (BIAsp70), biphasic insulin aspart 50 (BIAsp50) and soluble human insulin under experimental conditions.

Methods: In this randomised, four-period crossover study, 19 type 1 diabetic patients received subcutaneous injections of identical doses (0.2 U/kg) of either insulin aspart, BIAsp70, or BIAsp50 immediately before a standardized meal, or human insulin 30 min before meal. Plasma glucose and serum insulin were measured for 12 h postprandially.

Results: The pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles of human insulin differed from insulin aspart, BIAsp70 and BIAsp50. The 3 different aspart preparations had easily distinguishable features as regards onset and duration of action. Insulin aspart preparations were, on average, absorbed twice as fast as human insulin. In the initial phases (0–4 h and 0–6 h), AUCins was significantly higher during insulin aspart treatment as compared to the others, whereas insulin aspart had a significantly lower AUCins over the last 6 h (P<0.05). BIAsp70 and BIAsp50 provided comparable insulin coverage to that of human insulin over the last 6 h. Insulin aspart had the most pronounced onset of action and the shortest duration. Comparing with insulin aspart and BIASp70, BIAsp50 revealed a closer treatment ratio to human insulin on pharmacodynamic endpoints.

Conclusions: BIAsp70 and BIAsp50 injected immediately before a meal are at least as effective as human insulin injected 30 minutes earlier in controlling postprandial glycaemic excursions. BIAsp50 showed the greatest similarity to human insulin as regards pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles.

Declaration of interest: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest that could be perceived as prejudicing the impartiality of the research project.

Funding: This work was supported, however funding details unavailable.